Storage and display device



' Sept. 22, 1959 Q w. H. FREDRICKL 2,905,335

STORAGE AND DISPLAY DEVICE Filed Feb. 18, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 62 @0 w 2 9A 40 94 .Zuvavrae.

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81 Wm M Sept. 22, 1959 w. H. FREDRICK I 1 2,905,335 STORAGE AND DISPLAY DEVICE Filed Feb. 18, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 WILL lHM HIk'EDe/cz,

4rraRAJE! rack constituting a part: the inven o ;th erein in a manner to be des cribedn n in a pile of similar baskets on an 2, 05,3 RA E 21 1A DEW??? H; Fredrick- Log Angelesg Galifi, assiguor of hue-halfm Nathan Gilbert, Burbank, Calif.

pp ca io Feb ary 19-a5iiilN9i tit-a 6 (C 1 F 52) This invention relates to a storage and display device and, more particularly, to a storage and display device adapted to be utilized'in displaying comestibles such as eggs, or the like.

It is well known to those skilled; in the art that the prob lem of shipping and storing eggs in cartons and their ultimate display at the point of-sale has been a problem which has not been successfully solved and thus in the markets where eggs are soldthey are frequently stored in make-shift expedients such as conventional display gondolas or the cartons containing the eggs are stacked one on top of the other in the saine manier as canned g od 7, a

While the invention'will be disclosed as utilized particularly in the shipping, storing, and displaying of eggs packed in cartons, it is of course, "not"ifitendd thattlie utilization of the invention be imited to this particular come t ble sin it will be-ob 's at those skilled in'the art that the principles of the iri ention can -be applied wee a l f oth comej b a The n iona pr tice 'tqllqw iv h Shipping, tor ge, d u ti a displayjq e s pag g a t is that the cartoned eggs are shippeil in weoden crates or paperboard containers from they a reremoved when received in a market and staeked upon theshelfof the gondola or the like. Qne of the difficulties encountered in the markets whieh eustemarilysell large quantities o e sthe fast that he as amalgapi crates or ca n SH lar e i ant s .fa'tqra space which is then not ava' e to the market proprietor for the storage of other come'stibles. Furthermore, a deposit must be paid on the-eonventigrral tainers by the market operators It is, therefore, an object of my invention to provide a storage and display device which ntiles l ra lityof containers in the forrnof collapsible basket said; baskets being packed with cartons of eggs in the. packingiplant and being shipped to the market said baskets lThe baskets are stored in the storage area of the market until the need for additional cartons of eggs. is .indieated and said baskets are then transported to thefriisplay' frame or v gate; Qfdetail below. After the cartons of eggslin atparti ular basket ha e ee ha ed e b Qe zi ????9"? associated frame or rack and eel lapsed. 'ltis t It is obvious, therefore, that-the st M the storage of the collapsed basketsi's tartless h H consumed by en o l umeql an be i$ an cartons.

of eggs from the baskets is eliminated since the-baskets are so constructed -;t hat;the @eg g caigtons ean be vmarked .Withthe desired price and thereis no neeeeeitytfor additional handling of the cartons by ,the markettpersonnel.

ni ted States Patent basket of my invriti .s tr uctedin accordance the teachings jo Patented Sept. 1959 2 toned eggs in a market is the perishable nature of. the eggs. Therefore, when eggs in cartons are stackedin the conventional ma'nner at the point of sale in themarkets; it isnccessary that the cartons 'be rotated to maintain the oldest eggs most available for'selcction by theeustomer'. Due to the inertia characteristic of human beings, it fie quently happens that the market employee does 'not' rotate the cartoned eggs and thus those eggs at the bottom of'the staek' of cartons will frequently become stale;

It is, therefore, an object of my invention to provide a storage and display device wherein the inherentnatu r'e of the device induces the employee utilizing thesam e t?) rotate the cartoned-eggs. The'facility with which the cartoned eggs may be 'rotated is attributableTto the' 'fa'cit that instead of being stacked upon one another inhu'g'e piles, the individual cartons" are placed, in relatively small numbers, in the containers associated with the rack'cofistituting a 'part' of the display 'device' of my inventio'nf' It iswe-ll known to -those"skilled in mean that c'aft'oned eggs are a'relativel y bulky item and that" -the"utilizatioi1 of conventional means of displaying'the: same e'ntai s the consumption of a large quantity 'of display space; Therefore, the average market operator cannofcoi venie'ii'tly utilize eggs as a" salesprom'otion item because theh'aiidling of largequantities of cartoned eggs is a'relativly expensive proposition'f M i It is, thereforean additional object of my invention to provide a cornbined s'to'rag'e and"disp1ay"devie ftir cartoned'e gs and other 'cornes'tibles" which Will ia'bcprnnioda teapproximately forty five dozen "ca'r'toned eg f the space previously necessary-for displaying one-third of that number. In addition to permitting a largefqua ntity orggstd e displayed at he paint of @152 .thaars fi aeviaaor my invention alsol'permits a wider v ri'fy' of eggs tobe olferedft'o the ultimate lc'o'ilsunier' because "a larger quantity of eggs can belocated' at are" oiiit of sale.

' ot er eb' ec s a d advantages of e iavaiiqa W11 apparent fromfthe following specification andtli a partying drawings which arefor the of tion only and in which:

is a vertical, sectional view showing a display my invention;

Pig. 2 is a fragmentary, front elevational view taken 'rackofthe'display device of myinvemioa;

Fig'. 16 is a perspective 'view' of a'contai'rier basket construct'ed in accordance with the teachingsof'iiiy inven- Fig 7 is an enlarged, fragmentary, perspective view showing mannefin which eont'ainer basket's constructed in'accor'd'ance with" the teachings of iiiyinyention'niay be'superimposed one upon the other;'

Fig. 8 is a pe rspe ctive view showing the container n collapsedv to reduce thpve'r all s Z-e th revq and p i t Fi '9 i a P p ct ve h in th mangepi which a pluralitfof collapsed eontainer'b k 3 case 12 fabricated from wood or similar material and having a back wall 14, a bottom 16, side walls 18, and a top 20. A relatively low front wall 22 extends upwardly from the bottom 16 of the case 12 between the side walls 18.

It will be noted that the depth of the bottom 16 of the case 12 is considerably greater than the depth of the top 20 thereof and that the forward edges of the side walls 18 are inclined rearwardly as at 24 and said inclined forward edges of said side walls define a front opening 26 in the case 12 in conjunction with the front wall 22. The perimeter of the opening 24 is reinforced by the use of angle iron 28 secured in operative relationship therewith by appropriate fastening means, not shown. If desired, a refrigerating device 30 may be incorporated in the case 12 in order that the comestibles, in the present instance eggs, stored in the device 10 may be properly refrigerated.

Mounted within the case 12 is a frame or rack 32, said rack being substantially rectangular in both front and side elevations and being constituted by a plurality of banks 34, each of said banks including connecting means 36 constituted by angularly oriented connecting members 38 which, in the present embodiment of the invention, are constituted by lengths of strap iron connected at their upper extremities by a tie bar 40 and having their lower extremities impinging on the inner surface of the bottom 16 of the case 12. back of each of the banks 34 is constituted by connecting members 38 formed from angle iron and connected at their upper and lower extremities by horizontally oriented lengths of angle iron whose opposite extremities are welded or otherwise secured to the adjacent and contiguous extremities of the angularly oriented lengths of angle iron.

Secured to the above described connecting members 38 in vertically spaced relationship is container supporting means 40 constituted by a plurality of downwardly and rearwardly inclined track members 42, said track members being formed from lengths of angle iron and having their vertical legs secured to the adjacent surfaces of the connecting means 36 as by welding or the like. It will be noted that the angular orientation of the connecting means 36 and the downward and rearward inclination of the track members 42 constituting the container supporting means 40 of the rack 32 causes the outer extremities of the track members: 42 to be aligned with the angularly oriented opening 26 at the front of the case 12 of the storage and display device 10. It will also be noted that the lowermost track members 42 have their inner extremities extending beyond the rearward connecting means 36 so that the ends thereof may engage the inner surface of the bottom 16 of the case 12 to support the rack 32 within the case 12.

Secured to the outer extremities of the track members 42 and extending transversely thereof are container locating means 44, said container locating means being constituted by an elongated, rectangular bar 46 having upwardly bent tabs 48 at the opposite extremities thereof which constitute container locating tabs and function in a manner to be described in greater detail below.

Formed in the bar 46 intermediate its extremities are depressions 50 which are adapted to receive price tags or holders 52 which indicate the price of the eggs in the cartons disposed contiguous thereto.

It should be understood that any number of banks 34 can be incorporated in the rack 32 and that the vertically spaced track members'42 define, in conjunction with the connecting means 36, a plurality of substantially square cubicles 54 for the reception of containers 60 constituted by collapsible baskets 62.

Each of the collapsible baskets 62 is substantially square in configuration and is so dimensioned that it will receive twelve egg cartons 64, as best shown in Fig. 1

of the drawings. Each of the baskets 62 includfi-side The connecting means 36 at the,

Walls 66, 68, 70, and 72, the side walls 66 and 68 incorporating substantially square frames 74 having vertically oriented rods 76 extending therebetween with their opposite extremities welded to the contiguous portions of the frames 74. The side walls 70 and 72 include upper and lower tie rods 78 and 80 which have vertically oriented rods 82 extending therebetween. The opposite extremities of the tie rods 78 and 80 incorporate loops 84 which encompass the contiguous corners of the frames 74 of the side walls 66 and 68, thus constituting pivot points betweenthe side Walls 66, 68, 70, and 72 and permitting collapsing movement of the side walls toward each other in a manner to be described in greater detail below.

The bottom 86 of the basket 62 is constituted by a plurality of horizontally oriented rods 88 which are provided with loops 90 at their opposite extremities, said loops encompassing the lower extremities of the vertically oriented rods 82 of the side walls 70 and 72. Therefore, the basket 62 can be expanded or collapsed by respectively pulling outwardly on opposite corners thereof, or by pushing inwardly on said opposite corners. When the basket is in the collapsed condition shown in Fig. 8 of the drawings, the side walls 66 and 70 and 68 and 72 are juxtaposed to each other and the elongated rods 88 constituting the bottom 86 of the basket are disposed in contiguity to each other.

Connected to the lower extremities of the side walls are interconnecting means 94 which, as best shown in Figs. 6-8 of the drawings, are constituted by elongated lengths of wire depending from the associated side walls. If desired, solid pieces of sheet metal can be substituted for the lengths of Wire in the fabrication of the interconnecting means 94 whose function and purpose will be described in greater detail below.

In order to adequately describe the utilization of the storage and display device 10 of my invention and the utilization of the containers 60 constituted by the collapsible baskets 62, the sequence of operations entailed in the shipment, storage, and ultimate display at the point of sale of eggs in cartons will be described in detail.

At the packing plant, the baskets 62 are filled with egg cartons 64. As the baskets 62 are filled with cartons, they are disposed in superimposed relationship with one another in the manner illustrated in Fig. 7 of the drawings and, when so superimposed, the interconnecting means 94 of the upper basket will depend below and engage upon the contiguous upper extremities of the side walls 6672, thus preventing lateral movement of the superimposed baskets 62 with respect to one another and insuring that the baskets 62 in a stack of baskets will not be displaced inadvertently to cause damage to the eggs stored therein. Moreover, it will be noted that the interconnecting means 94 of the lowermost basket 62 will engage the surface upon which it is disposed and space the cartons located therein above said surface.

If desired, the baskets can be stacked upon a dolly or other means for easily conveying the same into the truck for shipment to markets.

When the loaded baskets are received at the market to which they are consigned, they can be conveyed to the storage room from the truck on a dolly or other means of conveyance and when the need arises the sales price of the individual cartons can be stamped upon the extremeties of said cartons because said extremities are accessible through the spaced vertically oriented rods 76 and 82 defining the side Walls of the basket 62. Therefore, the need for removing the cartons from the baskets 62, which is characteristic of prior art shipping methods, is eliminated.

After the retail price has been placed upon the extremities of the cartons of eggs in the above described manner, the baskets 62 are conveyed to the case 12 and are inserted into the individual cubicles defined between the annularlyand rearwardly inclined track members 42 and the connecting members 38 therefor. When the loaded baskets 62 are inserted into the rack 32, they are laid with one of the side walls 6672 in contiguity to the track members 42 with the open end of the basket being disposed upwardly and outwardly. Moreover, as evident from Fig. l of the drawings, the track members 42 are adapted to receive two baskets 62 in abutting relationship.

Because of the downwardly and rearwardly inclined attitude of the track members 42, the baskets 62 are maintained in operative relationship with the frame 32. Moreover, the open ends of the baskets are tilted upwardly so that the cartons 64 of eggs therein are easily viewed by the prospective purchaser, as graphically illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawings, so that the eggs may be easily selected and removed from the basket 62 containing the same.

When the supply of cartons in a basket 62 has been exhausted, the basket 62 may be removed from operative relationship with the rack 32 and returned to the store room where it can be stacked in collapsed condition in a Wheeled rack 96, as best shown in Fig. 9' of the drawings. Therefore, the undue consumption of storage area characteristic of the utilization of prior art shipping containers is eliminated since alarge number of baskets can be received in such a wheeled rack 96.

After the removal of an exhausted basket 62, the inner basket 62 can be pulled outwardly on the track members 42 into the outer position illustrated in Fig. 1 of the drawings. When so located, the basket 62 is maintained in its outer position by the engagement of the locating tabs 48 with the contiguous loops 84 at the corners of the basket 62. Thus, the basket 62 is maintained in its outer position in its associated cubicle 54 and will not slide downwardly despite the downward and rearward inclination of the track members 42 upon which it is supported.

Since the egg cartons are segregated into relatively small numbers in individual baskets 62, the problem of rotation of the egg stock to avoid undue deterioration thereof is simplified since an employee is never confronted with the necessity for shifting large numbers of cartons in order to rotate the oldest eggs to the front of the basket 62 in which the cartons containing the older eggs are located.

Because of the compact manner in which cartoned eggs can be stored in the baskets 62 and the baskets 62, in turn, supported in the rack 32, three times the number of cartons can be accommodated in the display device 10 of my invention as are ordinarily displayed in the same space by the use of conventional expedients. As previously indicated, when the baskets 62 have been emptied, it is merely necessary to collapse the same and place them in the wheeled rack 96 which can then be returned to the packing house so that the baskets, when expanded can be re-packed.

While I have described my invention as utilized in the packing of a shipment and display of cartoned eggs, it is, of course, obvious that the principles thereof are not limited to the handling of the particular comestible utilized in describing the construction and mode of function of the invention. There are many other packaged and unpackaged comestibles which can be packed into containers of the character disclosed herein and marketed from display devices incorporating said containers.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a display device, the combination of: a supporting frame incorporating a plurality of downwardly and rearwardly inclined supports, said frame having container locating means thereupon at the front thereof; and a plurality of containers mounted in said frame and engageable with said supports, said containers having portions at their bottoms engageable with said locating means to position them in said frame.

2. In a display device, the combination of: a frame having a plurality of downwardly and rearwardly inclined supports, said frame incorporating container 10- cating means extending transversely of said supports at the fronts thereof; and a plurality of removable containers mounted on said supports, said containers having portions at their bottoms engageable with said locating means to maintain said containers in predetermined positions on said supports.

3. In a display device for oomestibles, the combination of: a supporting frame including a plurality of laterally spaced, downwardly inclined track members having transversely oriented container locating means secured to the outer extremities thereof; and a plurality of removable open-ended baskets located and supported upon said track members, said baskets being disposed on said track members with their open ends uppermost and having portions at said open ends engageable with said locating means.

4. In a supporting frame adapted to receive and support a plurality of containers, the combination of: a plurality of vertically spaced, downwardly and rearwardly inclined supporting members having container locating means provided thereupon adjacent the upper extremities thereof; and connecting means secured to said supporting members for maintaining said supporting members in vertically spaced relationship.

5. In a supporting frame adapted to received and sup port a plurality of containers, the combination of: a plurality of vertically spaced, downwardly and rearwardly inclined supporting tracks; container locating means secured to the upper extremities of said tracks; and connecting means secured to said tracks for maintaining them in vertically spaced relationship with each other.

6. In a supporting frame adapted to receive and support a plurality of containers, the combination of: a plurality of vertically spaced, downwardly and rearwardly inclined supporting tracks; container locating means secured to the upper extremities of said tracks, said locating means incorporating upwardly projecting portions engageable with contigous portions of said container; and connecting means secured to said tracks for maintaining them in vertically spaced relationship with each other.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,035,935 Allen Mar. 31, 1936 2,088,149 Boston July 27, 1937 2,585,422 Averill Feb. 12, 1952 2,660,328 Averill Nov. 24, 1953 

